Love's Subtle Scheme
by chibiwolfgurl
Summary: The battle with Voldemort has ended. Our favorite characters have graduated and moved on with their lives. Fred and George still own their infamous joke shop. Everyone's happy, but what about a certain lovesick twin? R&R. Mainly Fred/OC.


**CWG: This is my first Harry Potter fanfiction, and the idea came to me this morning so I figured I'd give it a shot. Hope you enjoy… **

First shot

It was a dreadful day outside; the rain was sporadic and indecisive, while the sun played peak-a-boo with the clouds. Harry rushed through the busy crowds of Diagon Alley muttering distinct profanities under his breath as yet another old witch swerved in his way to see the sales at one of the nearby shops. He didn't bother looking around at the merchandise as he growled in frustration. 'Enough of this' he thought angrily as he thought of his destination, the familiar joke shop. He closed his eyes and felt the air around him tighten and the all too familiar feeling of suffocation rose in his chest. When he felt he could breathe again, he opened his eyes. He smiled as he saw the twins rushing around the busy shop in front of him. He walked inside and found his way to the counter where he could see George…or was it Fred…working the register.

"Hey Harry, Ginny's upstairs. Fred's out back with James." George said with his usual cheerful smile as he hinted that he was a bit busy. Harry nodded and headed to the back room. He noticed a young boy about twelve years old standing on his toes trying to reach some sort of new item he'd never seen before. He saw that the boy was on the verge of falling and lifted him up just enough to reach the box of what he could see were some sort of candy that made you 'blameless'. The only side effect being that your ears would be the size of an elephants for a week. The kid beamed up at Harry once he was on the ground again and rushed over to the counter.

Harry slowly made his way to where he knew he'd find his seven-year-old son and Fred. He wasn't disappointed when he walked in and saw James covered in soot laughing his head off on his uncle's knee as smoke rose from the now burnt experiment. Fred was equally impressed by the outcome and both of them didn't notice Harry standing in the doorway.

"Looks like you two are having fun." Harry laughed as he took in the picture. He couldn't help remember Seamus Finnigan's experiences in potions class their second year at Hogwarts.

"Daddy!" James cried out as he ran to Harry. He giggled as Harry picked him up and spun him around. Fred smiled thoughtfully and Harry wondered what could be passing through his mind. "Daddy, Uncle Fred's been showing my lots of cool things in the shop!"

Harry smiled as his son rambled on about the different pranks Fred had introduced him to. He could tell his son was going to be just as troublesome as the twins had been to his mother-in-law.

Together, Harry, James, and Fred went upstairs to see Ginny. She was laying on the couch when they walked in and Harry couldn't help but smile when he saw how round she was. George had been joking about her having quadruplets, but the doctors assured her there was only one healthy baby boy inside. She was nearly eight months along and working from home to help stay sane. Harry went to sit beside his wife and kissed her forehead softly as she rested her head on his lap. James wanted to go back downstairs, but Fred knew that Harry had other plans.

"Why won't you tell me where we're going?" Fred asked again. He hated shopping and especially when he had no idea of where he was or why he was there. Yes, he knew he was in England, in a muggle town to be exact, and yes, he knew the reason, but he was still a bit grumpy.

"Fred, I told you, I need help picking out a birthday gift for Ginny. And I can't exactly go to her favorite shops in Diagon Alley since all the women there have nothing better to do than ruin my surprises." Harry muttered haughtily. Fred knew that was true. Every chance Harry got, he'd bought Ginny something special: like a charm bracelet with charms that were engraved with their most happy memories together. The only problem was that the woman who sold the bracelet told someone who told someone else who let the surprise slip to Ginny the day before their anniversary. When Harry found out that she knew already he looked heartbroken. He'd been so excited about the idea. He'd even enchanted the bracelet to play her favorite melody whenever she was sad. Fred had to admit, it was the perfect gift.

"Alright, but I'm starving, Harry. And George needs me back soon. Can we please get something to eat?" Fred asked. His eyes begged his brother-in-law, and Harry couldn't help give in. He nodded and Fred smiled. As though it had been planned, both their stomachs growled in anticipation. "That means thank you, I think." Fred laughed as the two boys walked a little further.

"Here's a good place. I know you'll love it. I come here all the time when I'm here on business." Harry said as he held the door to a small café. Fred still didn't know where "here" was but he went inside all the same. He could smell something delicious being baked in the back, but couldn't recognize the flavors. His mouth began to water as he tried to focus on different ingredients. He was about to find out when Harry pulled him to a little table by the wall. There wasn't anyone else in the café with them and Harry started to whisper something to the red head when the back door opened.

"This is a muggle town, Fred. Be careful what you say." He managed before Fred's attention was pulled away completely.

Behind the counter, a young girl looked puzzled as she punched something into the register. Her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail, and Fred couldn't help but notice how her blonde curls hung down like gold ribbons as the sun streamed in from the window. He could see her green eyes glowing happily as she walked towards them with a menu. When she saw Harry, she smiled and asked, "Hello Mr. Potter, how's the family?"

Harry smiled and told her how Ginny was expecting another baby boy real soon and that James was excited about school. Fred smiled when her eyes flashed to him curiously, and he noticed a faint blush spread across her cheeks as she smiled back at him. "What can I get you boys today?" she asked politely trying to look away from the redhead. Harry told her he wanted his regular, but Fred had no idea what any of the food was. He looked at Harry expectantly but was discouraged when the boy wasn't helping him one bit.

"Everything looks so good," he lied, "What would you suggest?"

The girl smiled and pointed at some dish at the bottom of the specials. She mentioned some sort of description and he pretended to be interested. She took the menu and went to the back of the room with their orders. Harry smiled as he noticed Fred watching the girl walk away.

"Her name's Alex." He said suddenly, breaking the trance that had been put on Fred. "She owns this place. She does everything: cooking, cleaning, and serving." Fred nodded a bit as he stared at the empty place where Alex had vanished. "Not many people come by here because of the hard times people are facing. There's some sort of financial problem in this town. She might be put out of business…" Fred could see the disappointment in his eyes.

"She's a muggle?" Fred asked. He wasn't surprised when Harry nodded.

Harry watched as Fred plowed through his meal. He couldn't help but laugh as he saw Alex staring at him with wide eyes. She had come to sit with them just in case they didn't like something. Harry looked at his own meal and began to take a bite. He felt the bit of pasta on his taste buds and couldn't help but start eating like Fred…well not as energetically. It was as though he just realized he was starving. Alex laughed at them from her stool and her curls kept hitting the sunlight perfectly. Harry had to admit, she was beautiful (though not as beautiful as the woman he had waiting for him at home). He glanced at Fred and saw his blue eyes fixed on her for a moment. Harry could see a smile on the boy's face as he continued eating.

"Alex, you're the best cook I've ever met!" Fred exclaimed when he had finished. He begged her to make him another plate for later and she laughed as she went to prepare his order. Harry smiled at the two as he noticed how cute they looked smiling at each other. When she disappeared into the kitchen, Fred promised Harry that he'd find a way to keep her shop in business. Harry could see how serious he was, and he could tell his brother-in-law was slowly falling for Alex…or maybe for her cooking. Either way, it proved the muggle saying true: "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach."

**CWG: So that's all for now. Hopefully, you all enjoyed. Please review and tell me what you think about the story so far. Thank you for reading!**


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